This Summer Music MOB (Music Matters in Oswestry and the Borderlands) was delighted to receive a large number of instruments from a School in West London which has a connection with one of the charity’s Trustees.

The donation comprised flutes, clarinets, trombones, violins and a trumpet.  Impressed with the charity’s work providing music to local children, the school was looking for a recipient for its surplus orchestral instruments and Music MOB has been delighted to accept them.  These instruments join the many others which have been generously provided by local people and which have been put to good use by children in the area’s state schools.  These new donations will be loaned to children in September as we increase our teaching capacity from 95 to 125 children and welcome two new school partners.

Sue Turner, Trustee for Education said, “As I visit most of our schools on a regular basis, I see at first hand the benefits which music teaching has on our pupils.  It will be exciting to see new groups starting in September and it is only thanks to donations such as these that we are able to increase the numbers of pupils we teach.  We are very grateful to the school for this wonderful donation and to all the other generous donors and we will keep them informed about how the instruments are being used”.

As Music MOB prepares to move into a new academic year of music teaching it also looks forward to offering an Orchestra Day to be held at the Marches School in October, when young musicians will learn two pieces prepared especially for them to play together at the end of the session.

The charity was disquieted to read this month that “overall uptake of A-level music has fallen by a shocking 45% in the UK since 2010”* but is also comforted to discover that some of its own students are showing an enthusiasm for taking music GCSE when they reach that stage.  Music performance forms 30% of a GCSE examination, so Music MOB hopes it is giving the children a solid start as they move forward with music education.